Combined perforating and printing machine



Dec. 18, 1962 A. L. BELL ETAL 3,068,788

COMBINED PERF ORTING AND PRINTING MACHINE Filed March- 2l, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l lllllll Ill-lll;

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ML yllf l Dec. 18,'1962 A. 1 BELL ETAL COMBINED PERFORATING AND PRINTING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Shea?l 2 Filed March 2l, 1958 ATTORNEY.

Aindividually separable 3,068,788 CMBINED PERFORATNG AND PRINTHG vCHNE Arthur L. Bell and Gilbert H. Alford, Baltimore, Md., assignors to Young and Selden Company, Baltimore, Md., a corporation of Maryland Filed Mar. 2l, 1958, Ser. No. 722,943 9 Claims. (Ci. Mil- 226) This invention relates to the tart of printing machines, and is directed more particularly to a machine capable of simultaneously printing and perforating sheet material passing therethrough.

For a number of purposes, it is desirable to have sheet material both printed and perforated, the perforation extending either along a lsingle line, which may be longitudinal or transverse, or, more frequently, along several lines which are usually at right angles to one another. One very common example of an instance where `the latter is true is in sheets of checks which are to be bound into checkbooks, each sheet being line of perforation into a stub portion for retention in th checkbook `and a check portion subdivided by one or more longitudinal lines of perforation into two or more checks. Another example might be a form letter or page of advertisement having a corner or end portion separable along transverse and longitudinal lines vof perforation for return to the sende-r yor advertiser.

Heretofore, it has generally been the practice to print and perforate such sheets in two separate operations on two `separate and independent machines. This procedure is, of course, expensive by the very fact 'that two machines must be employed. Also, separate operators are frequently necessary to observe the functioning of the machines and make the adjustments required to maintain the perforation consistently in proper registration relative to the printed matter, or vice versa, dependent upon whether the printing or perforating is performed first. Where a flat bed printing machine is employed, it is possible, and has been suggested, to lock up one or more perforating knives in .the flat-imprint chase and .in such a chase the knives can be arranged at right angles without difficulty. However, modern high speed printing requires the use of rotary printing members and while a perfonating knife may be more or less readily mounted on a cylinder panallel to the cylinder axis, it will be apparent that it is not a simple matter to mount on the exterior of the cylinder a knife which extends peripheral- 1y. Even if a suitable arrangement could be satisfactorily o designed, separate knives for different depths of perforation or sheet thicknesses would, of necessity, be required.

Fin-ally, it has been proposed .that the perforating knife be formed integrally with the printing plate, i.e. a lithographic pla-te, are for-med is not well adapted to take a durable cutting edge and an edge provided thereon does not stand up for the desired long periods of use.

lt is therefore the primary object yof the present invention to provide -a printing machine having a rotary printing member on which is mounted one or more perforating knives formed of durable material, which knives extend around a portion of the periphery .of the member and, if desired, parallel to the axis thereof as well.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a printing machine having a rotary printing member bearing one or more peripheral perforating knives alone or in combination with one or more axialperforating knives, together with means for adjusting theV depth of perforation thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a printing machine of the type just described wherein the perforating but the material from which such plates Y divided by a transverse 3,058,788 Patented Dec. 18K, 1952 iCC 2 Y knives lare readily removable for purposes of sharpenin or replacement. t

Other objects yand advantages will be revealed by `the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE l `is a highly diagrammatic view in side elevation of the principal components :of a printing machine with which the invention is adapted to be associated;

FIGURE 2 is a view of the exterior tace of a printing segment removed from the machine of FIGURE l 'and embodying the invention;

FIGURE 3 isa view of the interior of the printing segment of FIGURE 2 showing the mounting and adjustment means for the perforating knives;

FGURE 4 is a transverse cross'section along line 4-4 of FIGURE 3;

FGURES 5 and 6 are fnagmentary transverse sections taken `along lines 5 5 and 6 6 of FIGURE 4;

FiGURE 7 is 1an enlarged perspective View of a special connecting member employed in the mounting and adjusting means; and

FIGURE 8 is :an enlarged fragmentary sectional view v of the printing segment land blanket cylinder in operative relationship, revealing the modification of the blanket cylinder' for purposes of the invention.

While the novel features of the invention can be applied to a variety of printing presses having rotary printing members, they are kshown herein for the purposes of illustration in association with la small press manufactured and sold under .the trade 'designation Dual-Lift Model i241 by the Davidson VCorporation of Brooklyn, New

York. The significan-t components of this press are shown diagrammatically in FIGURE l and it will bel observed there that the press operates according to the so-called two-cylinder offset principle. Conventional oset printing requires the use of three cylinders: plate, blanket and impression. The plate cylinder, as the name implies, carries the printing plate which is inked in the usual way.

The ink image is transferred to the blanket cylinder which,

in turn, prints the image upon the paper passing between it and the impression cylinder. According to the two-cylinder principle, there are employed only two cylinders, an upper and la lower, designated 1 land 2, respectively, in FIGURE l. The `upper cylinder carries both the plate and impression elements in the form of removable segments, '3 and 4 respectively, extending no more than 180 of its periphery, and has a diameter approximately twice that of the lower or blanket cylinder 2. IInk is applied by the usual inking rolls 5 to the plate segment portion 3 of upper cylinder 1, the inked image 1s transferred to blanket cylinder 2, and the -sheet is printed as it passes between the impression segment portion 4 of upper cylinder 1 and blanket cylinder 2., the delivery of the sheet being timed to coincide'with the arrival of Ithe impression segment. Blanket cylinder 2,

'of course, undergoes two revolutions for each revolution and reverse faces and a transverse cross Section of impression segment 4 removed from the remainder of the press. This segment is adapted to be retained in operative position on the upper cylinder by .means-not shown, which have no bearingA on the presentv invention. The body of the impression segment is a cast or fabricated structure, consisting, in integral association, of an arcuate peripheral wall 10 extending in the instance shown through approximately v1410-", whose radius is that of the upper cylinder as a whole, and a series of equally spaced, very deep ribs 12 projecting from the rear or e l adsense the cast or fabricated body of the segment by screws or Y -t-he like (not-shown).

.The particular segment illustrated isequipped for theV direct printing of a portion of the reverse side of a sheet. Thus, the segment, carriesV a lithographieV printing plate 22 Yhaving one end securedV in a clamp 24 provided at one end of wall V and the otherY end extending through Va slot 26 provided for that purpose in Wall 10 and engaged by a wedging mechanism generally designated 28 arranged in the interior of the segment. The wedging 4, peripheral slots 42, 44 at one end virtually join axial mechanism consists of a series of U-shaped supports 30 Vmounted for pivotal movement on `a common shaft 32. Each of these supports carries a pivotaleccentric 34 having a knurled or roughened face, the end of lithographie plate 22 being grippedrbetween this 'knurled face and the -cross member rof thel bail. An adjustment screw 36 is available on each support in order to project outwardly 'of vperipheral walll 10 maintaining the inking rolls or the like out of contact with the exterior face of the plate` ;segment.while the upper cylinder Yis being revolved.

Where a printing `plate is provided on a portion of the .impression Cylinder for the direct printing vofa portion of the reverse s ide of the sheet, the flange strips are Yrelieved as at 38 Ito Ypermit the plate to'be inked. Ob-

viously, itfis not necessary that the impression segment be employed for direct printingand the printing plate and lelated securing devices may Ybe omitted from the segment, in which, event the llange strips 20would provject throughout their length the full extent b `Up to this point,.the mechanism described has been thatfwhich is conventional to the particular Davidson `press illustrated and has no direct relationship to the subject matter ofthe invention except to server, as a context in which` the novel features aboutrto be described exist. Ags has already been indicated, lthese novel features are not limited in application to the particular detailsof'the n press but are readily adaptable to other forms of printing machines. Ordinarily, the invention is more conveniently associated with an impression, cylinder than with Ya printingn cylinder due to the presence of type over substan-V tially the entire area. of the latter. However, where-the arrangement of type and the manner in which the same VisIllQunted on a printing cylinder, is such asto readily f Vaccornmodatethe presence Yof perforating` knives, there does notY appear to heV any reason Why a printing cylinder could not-be employed.,Y e Y Turning now to -a description'of'.thefrovelfeatures Y Y'of invention, the segment asshownfhasbeen modied rfor the printing of checkbook pages-,1 eachY having threeV l'checks and a stub common to all three-checks. Con- ;sequently, the' finished sheet must have threelines of perforation, @one extending laterally vor transversely of `the' Sheet and `dividing the same `intro a stub portion andV Y check portion and the two others extendingperpeneyond wall Y will be later explained, both the axial and transverse` slots are passed entirely through the peripheral wall for Vshort intervals at two or morerspaced points therealong, Yas at 46 on slot 40 (FIGURE 6) and at 4S on slots 42,

44 (FIGURE 4). As Ycan be seen from FIGURES 2 and slot 40, lterminating just short thereof, the space intervening between the ends of the peripheral slots and adjacent Wall of the-axial slot'be'ing approximately equalzto the s space betweenradjacent teeth ori-the perforating knives. Mounted in axial slot 40 is an axial perforating knife 50 which is of such lateral and longitudinal dimensions i 'i Knife 50 as to make a snug slidingrt with the slot. is straight throughout its full length, having perforating teeth 52 formed on its outerredge. On its inner edge, there are provided several inwardly extending projections 54 which correspond in'number, length and spacing with the portions 46 of slot 40 which pass entirely through wall 16, the height of the knife when measured at these projections being substantially in excess of the full thickness of wall 10. Similarly, there are mounted in peripheral slots 42, 44 peripheral perforating knivesV 56, 58 which are arcuate in shape with the outer curvature conf forming as closely as possible to the outer curvaturerof peripheral Wall 10. Knives 56, 58 also carry-closely spaced teeth 60 similar to the teeth 52 on knife 50 and are 'formed with inwardly extending Vprojections 62 on e their rear edges, conforming in number, length and peripheral spacing toV the portions A48 of slots 42, 44V which pass completely through peripheral Wall 10Q As can be best seen from FIGURES 3, 4 andg, a rod 64 is arranged in the interior of the segment'with itsr` axis in radial alignment with axial lperforating knife 50. This rod passes through apertures 66V provided'for this vpurpose inthe various ribs 12 and makes a tight it therewith, being parallel tothe segment axis. At points along Y its length in transverse registration with projecting portions 54 of knife 50, apertures 68Y are drilled entirely' through rod 64sat right angles to its axis andra bolt 70.E

,h aving a knurled head 72 and a threaded end 74 pene:-

Ytrates each of apertures 68. Communicating with eacli of the transverse apertures 68 is a right angular aperture' 76 whichis tapped for the reception of a locking screwv j 78. When locking'screw 78 is tightened, it bears against, Y e Ythe surface of bolt.68 and prevents rotationv of the same; f Y

The threaded end of bolt 70 is infthreadwise engagement'.

.with avtapped recess S0 extending partially througha dicularly to the transverse line ofV perforation, that is,`Y`

longitudinally :of the; sheet, at spaced points, preferably of equal 'spacing along ,the length of the transverse line.

' cent'the peripheral slots, eachrod being in properY radial alonga li'ne parallel Ato vthe axis thereof, as at 40, over Y i the-full axi'al'dimensioh'thereof 'except forfshort spaces `vat the extreme ends, fan'd alongtwoperipherally extendinglines:Y projecting at right `angles to line=40 'at points e'quidistant-along'the length thereof, as 'at 42 and-44.

TheV depth" to Vwhich. the slots are formed in peripheral i wall 10 is determined generally by the annular thickness short cylindrical memberv 82 along the axis thereof;

. The other end of member 82 is formed with akdiamet- Vrical slot 84Y adapted to snugly receive a projectingpor tion 54 of perforating knife 50. To retain projection 54 f in slot 84, the cylindrical member maybe provided withf i-f a set screw 86. Axial movement of eachv of bolts '7054V relative to rod 64 is` Vprevented Vby neans ofiixed coli-" lar 88;

VVVThe securing and adjusting mechanismrfor peripheral Y' knives 42, 44 is generally the sameas thatV described .connection with axial knife'40,{.j 'Ihusa pluralityofe l short supporting rods 90, and. 92 are VmountedI parallel to the segment axis in two-of the ribs V12 whichare adjaalignment with each of the series of corresponding pro-V v Y Where the length-,of the rods'n is such that itk exceedsrrthe space between the y,ribs andgi jections 54 on the knives.V

thus cannot be 'passed between them during mounting,

the rods` mayU be madeY in .two sections telescopingjto-V gether and maintained at the desired relativeaxial posi- Y tions by means. ofla, set screw 94 (FIGURE, 3). bolt 96 having 4a knurled head' 95 and generallyV similar to Y bolt 70, extends radially through each of a series of recesses 97 provided in the rods 99, 92, there being one bolt for each of the projections 54 on the peripheral knives. Bolts 96 may be held against undesired rotation by means of set screws 98 while longitudinal movement of bolts 96 may be prevented by means of collars 100 dxedly carried thereby.

With the particular segment illustrated, it happened that the positions of two of the ribs 12 in its interior coincided wih the positions of the peripheral slots 42, 44. While this was by no means undesirable as it tended to minimize any likelihood of slots 42, 44 weakening the peripheral Wall, it is not considered essential that the ribs and slots be in substantial alignment as this wouldv not necessarily be the case where the invention is applied to other segments or other printing members. Because of this coincidence, however, it was necessary to rout out the lower portion of these two ribs as at 102 in order to provide access to tongues 62. Moreover, a special 4form of connection between the threaded ends 99 of bolts 96 and tongues 62 was required, as can be best seen in FIGURES 5 and 7. This special connection, which is designated 106, has an upstanding boss 108, that is bored and tapped for engagement with the threaded end portion of bolts 96, and a downwardly directed projection 110 oiset from boss 10S that is slotted at 111 to receive tongues 62. Tongue engaging portion 110 also carries a set screw 112 which can be tightened to press against the tongue and hold the same in place. The length of set screw 112 is such as to extend out from beneath boss portion S and its head 114 has a series of apertures 116 in the periphery thereof into which an appropriate key can be inserted to rotate the same.

The blanket cylinder 2 which is in rolling contact with the periphery of the combined upper cylinder is, as is well known, covered with a rubber blanket. It is possible for the printing machine equipped in accordance with the invention to be run with the usual rubber blanket. However, over periods of repeated use this blanket is cut or gouged by the perforating knives. It is therefore desirable to remove a narrow strip of the blanket in the region corresponding to each of the knives on the impression segment, as at 116 in FIGURE 8, and to replace the same with a long narrow strip 118 of suitable material which is secured to the body of the blanket by means of a rubber base adhesive, such as that sold under the trade name Pliobond The width of metal strip 11S is great enough to provide a bearing surface vfor the teeth of the knives, MaJ-)s inch being ordinarily adequate, while its length should be at least as great as that of the corresponding knife. In FIGURE 8, the sheet S is shown in perforating position.

From the aforegoing, perforating knives may be simply and accurately adjusted by rotation of the corresponding bolts. Moreover, when the knives become dull, they can be simply replaced without the removal of the adjusting and securing mechanism. The accurate positioning and repositioning of the knives to a pre-selected depth may be facilitated by the provision of equally spaced indicia 120 about the rim of the heads of the adjusting bolts and an indicating mark on the upper surface of the supporting rods.

As the peripheral blades are adjusted inwardly lfrom their maximum projecting position, being rigid members, they must move bodily into the slots 42, 44, the peripheral dimension of the blades being xed. However, as the radius decreases, all portions of the knives cannot enter the slots in the peripheral wall of the cylinder at the same rate. The dierential in rate of retrogression of portions of the peripheral blades increases rapidly where the length of the blade is such as to extend over an arc in excess of 90. Thus, for example, where the blade covered 180 of the surface of the segment and Was moved inwardly along a radius passing through its it win be appreciated that the* f having inner and outer faces, said halfway point, the extreme ends of the blades would never retrogress into the peripheral slot at al1. Ordinarily, the range in depth of perforation will be rather small compared to the radius of curvature of the segment so that the presence of this differential will create no real practical diiculties. However, it is preferred that the length of any one perforating knife be such as to extend through no more than a arc. Should greater lengths be necessary, two blades should be employed end to end, each with its own adjusting and securing mechanisrn so that it can be moved independently of the other.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the subject matter of this invention provides a simple solution to the problem of simultaneous printing and multidirectional perforation of web or sheet material. The perforating knives, both axial and peripheral, are supported at a plurality of points along their length; means are provided for adjusting each of these points of support inwardly along a radius of the printing segment or cylinder to vary the depth of perforation; and the adjusting means is simple in design, capable of ready assembly on the interior of the printing element, and is easily detachable without disassembly from the perforating knives to permit replacement of the latter. Also, the adjusting means can be secured against accidental rotation.

It is to be understood that the particular printing element and the embodiment of the invention that is associated therewith are provided for purposes of illustration only and are subject to variation within the Spirit of the hereunto appended claims.

Having -thus described my invention, that which iS claimed is:

1. In a printing apparatus, a rotatable impression element including a curved annular peripheral wall section wall section having an axially extending slot therein, a straight perforating knife mounted in said slot, said wall section also having at least one slot therein extending at right angles to said axial slot and terminating at one end closely adjacent said axial slot, an arcuate perforating knife mounted in said right angular slot, said arcuate knife having a radius of curvature substantially equal to that of the surface of said peripheral Wall, and means disposed inwardly of the inner face of said wall section for engaging said knives radially relative to the curvature of said section, said means being accessible from the interior of said wall section.

2. The machine of claim l wherein each of said slots extends entirely through said peripheral wall section in selected portions thereof and a rearwardly projecting tongue is provided on the rear edge of each of said knives at points corresponding to each of said slot portions, said tongue extending inwardly of said wall section, and said means on the interior of said peripheral wall section engages said tongues.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein said tongue-engaging member includes a telescoping element adapted to be varied in length to alter the extent to which said knives are received Within said slots.

4. The machine of claim 2 wherein said tongue-engaging means comprises a iixed supporting member spaced inwardly of the interior of said wall section, a radiallyextending member rotatably mounted in said supporting member, and a tongue-engaging member in threaded c011- nection with said radially-extending member whereby rotation of the latter varies the radial position of the tongueengaging member and thereby the position of said knife A in said slot.

5. The machine of claim 4 including means carried by said supporting member for retaining said radially-extending member against accidental rotation.

6. In a printing machine, a rotatable printing element including a curved annular peripheral wall section having inner and outer faces and at least one peripherally extending slot in said lwall section, an arcuate perforating lknife retained in said slot with its cutting edge projecting exteriorly thereof, said edgehaving a'curvature substantially Yconforming to that ofV said wall section, said perforating knife having at least one portion thereon projecting rearwardly'at least substantially through said peripheral wall section s'o as to be-accessible from the inner face of said Wall section, and means mounted on the, interior of said element! for engagement with said rearwardly projecting portion on said knife,-said means being adjustable to vary the extent of projection of said knife.

7. `The machine of claim 2 wherein said engaging means ineludes a longitudinally adjustable memfber engaging each of said tongues, the longitudinal axisfof each said member extending radially of the` impression element.V

8.V Thermachine as in claim 7 Vwherein said peripheral knives extend through an arc of not more than about 90'. t

9. In a printing apparatus, a rotatable impression element including a curved `peripheral Wall section, said Wall section havingY a narrow slot therein, a perforating knife arranged in said slot, said =knife having an extension exf tending rearwardly` therefrom through said peripheral wall. section and projecting into the interiorof said element, and meansmounted on the interior ofhsaid element Y `for engagement with the extension onV said knife, said means, being adjustable to permit said knifeto be ad-V Y justed radially of the surface of said wall section, whereby said knife can 'be adjusted from within the interior of saidv element. Y

References Cited in the file of this patentv UNITED STATES PATENTS 

